Watching and Musing about the Social Network
Watched Social network and quite liked it essentially because of the elements Scott Adams put up in his review here .
http://www.dilbert.com/blog/entry/the_social_network__review/
"I appreciate the movie for what it did not do. It did not rely on special effects in a way that was obvious to the viewer. It wasn't in 3D. There was no violence. There was no car chase scene. If you make a list of all the elements that can make a movie predictable and lame, this movie had none. That's at least partly because the story is inspired by reality."
For me that was real point . Something lacking all the common stuff for which people flock to a movie . I was kind of bugged up the Avatars and Inceptions dealing with what we don't understand or see - and refusing to face up to what faces us - our own human social awkwardness and insecurities in the existing realm.
Though more than the movie I essentially thought a lot about the real facebook in general.
The ending scene seriously is the real poignant picture. Humanity invariably is like that after all the Darwin , Freud and Einstein and
relegion stuff when people are obsessed well they are obsessed. Money is a great substitute - a great painkiller it just wont heal the wounds .
The movie does reflect greatly on how someone hugely socially awkward built the worlds biggest social networking.
It actually makes you feel like he thinks even more worse of the general populace who fall for it and is kind of smirking.
and if you read about these old IM's of Zuckerberg well he surely was !!.
Secondly as much as we want to believe the world's most successful people are wonderful humans - fact is they necessarily dont have to be the nicest and good people.
Its not just Zuckerberg - as much as we love Apple products and find steve jobs inspiring - fact is the guy's damn arrogant.
But yeah he's got enough reasons to be :) and its hard to envision many in that position who wouldnt be.
Getting back to social networking - I was just musing how there could be two kinds of populace
- one who are truer on facebook than in reality i.e they express themseleves and their thoughts easier there
and other who build up exactly the facade they want to be but never will be.
The most miniscule percentage would be the people who are exactly the same on and out of Facebook
(as a matter of fact anything online - I certainly consider myself in the first set in a general way as I blog anonymously).
But yeah facebook differs or hoped to differ from other online stuff in the sense that its about people you know even if not friends.
Though seriously its not even that.I read about this facebook scam and was like hmm .
The movie reminded me of so many things in general.
I have a friend who just wont join facebook and deleted her orkut account too.
She's had a rough time in life and she says she gets upset by the constant advertising by people of their family and kids and that
happiness facade or truth or whatever.Thats one side - and I think its just a personal reaction but happens with a reason.
Then I see some comments .
I have two friends - both have very cute kids.and I left comments on their cute kids.
What amused me though was this - these two remotely know each other - and yet -
one friend then left a comment about how wonderful and cute and smart the kid was looking
the other then reciprocates - ur princess too is very sweet.
This is exactly the loving diplomacy , backslapping and false affection reminds of that song
"tum hume good kaho - hum tumhe very good kahenge"
It is not that the kids are not cute its just the fakeness - (though to be honest even if they werent they - children are supposed to be said to be cute.Any other word and you are heartless.)
Neverthless we are now in the facebook generation and I wont be cruel and say all of it is fake as Ive seen a lot of people being
really in touch with a whole bunch - the people you would lose touch with but for facebook.
Its the same old 80-20 pareto rule I guess.
80% of the time we care about a maximum of 20% of the facebook contacts/features .
P.S:My last thought on this was if I do live through for a decade or so more - I will be reading the autobiographies of all these people about whom right no so called inspired biographies are made - and what new twists they will throw up.
Sunday, November 21, 2010
Sunday, November 07, 2010
A Welcome break for thoughts
After a very long boring year or so I finally took a quick long weekend break.
I am not too social as it is and my current job - where we dont have much of a team really being scattered as it is -
so no outings, lunches etc - the usual corporate hoopla and thus for a very long time my only outing was to the shopping mall.
So this was was a very very unplanned trip. Some girls at my office had a planned outing with some other of their friends and a common friend suggested to join them.So I and my sister were virtual outsiders in that group and then other girls too joined and it was one tortourously packed cab we were in .
So prior to my usual rant - few lines about this quick trip to Coorg - it had its moments.
That moment atop Talacauvery temple and at Raja's seat at Madikeri to get a view of the mountains with fog and clouds.
Then the walk to the Abbey falls in rain - it was a beautiful waterfall - but for me the euphoric thing was unlike quite a few girls I did
not get any leeches onto me. Seriously since the time I heard of Coorg - I who have a perenial scare of all crawling stuff was quite
worried.
Finally we hurried off most places to get to Nagarhole - but it was one big dissapointment. When the safari van chap
does not close the doors you know nothing wild's around in the forest.
Nothing really - just deer deer and more deer and as they say so many deer means no tigers.
Not sure if we were unlucky not to spot any or its a nice coverup as many Indian things are.
But what I remember of that ride in nagarhole was the fresh and fragrant smell of forest . It was very very nice.
When you came out you could tell the difference.
In fact with the group of excited young women that I was with paddy fields on the way seemed to be
most entertaining with everyone posing their photographs.
All in all it was a welcome break for me - It was a experience though despite the travel discomfort of being packed up in a cab.
But I needed it to tear myself away from my laptop. It just isnt work - I sort of seem to be stuck with it - to avoid thinking .
So firstly the whole group was the very young brigade - hyper excited , jovial - the just out of girls college syndrome.
I was quite apprehensive on this count .
Also I sometimes I feel its better for me to maintain some personal distance with people at office.
The below incident explains why
Vibrant vivacious and very sweet this girl who sits two cubicles from me and I are in same room with my sister.
It starts such
You got the hike ? How less they give :( but at least you got. You must be a rich girl.
Me: Try to play along - Yeah Yeah you are as rich as you feel
She: OOOO and my sis tooo joins in with ooooooooo
What I wanted to say: kiddo when i was your age I did not have a penny in hand - money is bloody important -
but what for the money is also as important - as is being peaceful at least ,if not happy with your surroundings.
She: How much experience you have XXX - Oh really I did not know that.
Then why are you here - you should jump and get such a good hike
Me: But well I am used to the good life here and work too is not bad and I have my perks of not being answerable theoretically half the time to anyone really - I have my issues but where are there no issues.
See in other jobs I'd never have been able to take this holiday as easily - though Id been abale to afford a expensive one
- so for me things balance out
She: But see this is the age to work work and earn. later we cant esp after marriage etc etc.
I cant afford anything with what they pay - have to buy a car.
What I wanted to say: My dear I am already at a age where I am tired - (then I would have rethought - really -
at what age did you not have the inertia disease.)
Seriously when such sweet young people offer advice so overwhelmingly confidently I can only remember one quote -
esp as since a decade -I think of myself as old
" I am not young enough to know everything"
She: This place has so much politics, this that and about her manager , other managers
Me: Have you worked anywhere else prior to here
I finally say what I wanted to say - I have worked a a few more places so let me tell you ,
while all you say may be true - wherever you go dont expect any different - just that they will pay you more which is good surely.
Its always been nice to work with young people their enthusiasm and all , but somehow there is a sense of discomfort.
Because they haven't seen the other part of life. for e.g these I wish they would have a look at their juniors from 2009 who had seen their dreams crashing. What you get easy - one never values is what Ive seen and learnt from them.
As I said its the exuberance of youth - and as much as I like to watch it from a distance - getting cozy with them
raises such uncomfortable situations to which I have the answers but not the heart to slam it onto their faces.
P.S: Seriously I have my extravagant tastes - books for one or lil diamonds for another - , but why do people including my sister have a problem if that isnt buying a car or splurging on restaurants and dresses at sales of their choice.
I dont condemn their tastes - but whenever I end up in company of such people they have this way of making me feel like I am a miser.
I am surely compared to them - but thats how I am and have no qualms about it.
My sisters an expert at these esp with her interpretation of "The Ant and the Grasshopper" Aesop fable.
Most version I checked on google - specify that ants turn their backs on the grasshopper - and then the moral of the story is displayed about " there is a time for work and time for play"
Buy my dear sister and me in our childhood must have read a kinder version wherein the ants after giving a long moral of the story
ask the grasshopper to join in - in return for singing for them.
So here's the moral of the story she picks up -
After all the grashopper said sorry and it was just a short repreive and all Grasshopper does is sing along
doing what it loves and lives happily.
In a way she's damned right and probably the world is skewed that way.
Grasshoppers always find ants who sustain them.
After a very long boring year or so I finally took a quick long weekend break.
I am not too social as it is and my current job - where we dont have much of a team really being scattered as it is -
so no outings, lunches etc - the usual corporate hoopla and thus for a very long time my only outing was to the shopping mall.
So this was was a very very unplanned trip. Some girls at my office had a planned outing with some other of their friends and a common friend suggested to join them.So I and my sister were virtual outsiders in that group and then other girls too joined and it was one tortourously packed cab we were in .
So prior to my usual rant - few lines about this quick trip to Coorg - it had its moments.
That moment atop Talacauvery temple and at Raja's seat at Madikeri to get a view of the mountains with fog and clouds.
Then the walk to the Abbey falls in rain - it was a beautiful waterfall - but for me the euphoric thing was unlike quite a few girls I did
not get any leeches onto me. Seriously since the time I heard of Coorg - I who have a perenial scare of all crawling stuff was quite
worried.
Finally we hurried off most places to get to Nagarhole - but it was one big dissapointment. When the safari van chap
does not close the doors you know nothing wild's around in the forest.
Nothing really - just deer deer and more deer and as they say so many deer means no tigers.
Not sure if we were unlucky not to spot any or its a nice coverup as many Indian things are.
But what I remember of that ride in nagarhole was the fresh and fragrant smell of forest . It was very very nice.
When you came out you could tell the difference.
In fact with the group of excited young women that I was with paddy fields on the way seemed to be
most entertaining with everyone posing their photographs.
All in all it was a welcome break for me - It was a experience though despite the travel discomfort of being packed up in a cab.
But I needed it to tear myself away from my laptop. It just isnt work - I sort of seem to be stuck with it - to avoid thinking .
So firstly the whole group was the very young brigade - hyper excited , jovial - the just out of girls college syndrome.
I was quite apprehensive on this count .
Also I sometimes I feel its better for me to maintain some personal distance with people at office.
The below incident explains why
Vibrant vivacious and very sweet this girl who sits two cubicles from me and I are in same room with my sister.
It starts such
You got the hike ? How less they give :( but at least you got. You must be a rich girl.
Me: Try to play along - Yeah Yeah you are as rich as you feel
She: OOOO and my sis tooo joins in with ooooooooo
What I wanted to say: kiddo when i was your age I did not have a penny in hand - money is bloody important -
but what for the money is also as important - as is being peaceful at least ,if not happy with your surroundings.
She: How much experience you have XXX - Oh really I did not know that.
Then why are you here - you should jump and get such a good hike
Me: But well I am used to the good life here and work too is not bad and I have my perks of not being answerable theoretically half the time to anyone really - I have my issues but where are there no issues.
See in other jobs I'd never have been able to take this holiday as easily - though Id been abale to afford a expensive one
- so for me things balance out
She: But see this is the age to work work and earn. later we cant esp after marriage etc etc.
I cant afford anything with what they pay - have to buy a car.
What I wanted to say: My dear I am already at a age where I am tired - (then I would have rethought - really -
at what age did you not have the inertia disease.)
Seriously when such sweet young people offer advice so overwhelmingly confidently I can only remember one quote -
esp as since a decade -I think of myself as old
" I am not young enough to know everything"
She: This place has so much politics, this that and about her manager , other managers
Me: Have you worked anywhere else prior to here
I finally say what I wanted to say - I have worked a a few more places so let me tell you ,
while all you say may be true - wherever you go dont expect any different - just that they will pay you more which is good surely.
Its always been nice to work with young people their enthusiasm and all , but somehow there is a sense of discomfort.
Because they haven't seen the other part of life. for e.g these I wish they would have a look at their juniors from 2009 who had seen their dreams crashing. What you get easy - one never values is what Ive seen and learnt from them.
As I said its the exuberance of youth - and as much as I like to watch it from a distance - getting cozy with them
raises such uncomfortable situations to which I have the answers but not the heart to slam it onto their faces.
P.S: Seriously I have my extravagant tastes - books for one or lil diamonds for another - , but why do people including my sister have a problem if that isnt buying a car or splurging on restaurants and dresses at sales of their choice.
I dont condemn their tastes - but whenever I end up in company of such people they have this way of making me feel like I am a miser.
I am surely compared to them - but thats how I am and have no qualms about it.
My sisters an expert at these esp with her interpretation of "The Ant and the Grasshopper" Aesop fable.
Most version I checked on google - specify that ants turn their backs on the grasshopper - and then the moral of the story is displayed about " there is a time for work and time for play"
Buy my dear sister and me in our childhood must have read a kinder version wherein the ants after giving a long moral of the story
ask the grasshopper to join in - in return for singing for them.
So here's the moral of the story she picks up -
After all the grashopper said sorry and it was just a short repreive and all Grasshopper does is sing along
doing what it loves and lives happily.
In a way she's damned right and probably the world is skewed that way.
Grasshoppers always find ants who sustain them.
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